, the mind of the artist.
Thus having disproved the supposed poetical obstacles to the
rendering of real life or nature in its own real garb and time, as
faithfully as Art can render it, nothing need be said to answer the
advantages of the antique or mediaeval rendering; since they were
only called in to neutralize the aforesaid obstacles, which obstacles
have proved to be fictitious. It remains then to consider the
_artistic_ objection of costume, &c., which consideration ranges
under the head of _real differences between the things of past and
present times_, a consideration formerly postponed. But this
requiring a patient analysis, will necessitate a further
postponement, and in conclusion, there will be briefly stated the
elements of the argument, thus.--It must be obvious to every
physicist that physical beauty (which this subject involves on the
one side [the ancient] as opposed to the want of it on the other [the
modern]) was in ancient times as superior to physical beauty in the
modern, as psychical beauty in the modern is superior to psychical
beauty in the ancient. Costume then, as physical, is more beautiful
ancient than modern. Now that a certain amount of physical beauty is
requisite to constitute Fine Art, will be readily admitted; but what
that amount is, must be ever undefined.
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